by our College Data Analytics TeamThe majority of students will never be charged the full sticker price of a school. Rather, they are offered a financial aid plan that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The total price of attendance at The Catholic University of America can feel overwhelming, but bear in mind that many students receive some sort of financial aid.
What financial aid options can CUA offer you, and what will you qualify for? Keep reading for more information. Keep going to learn just how much financial aid will be open to you.
Eligibility for aid and scholarships is driven mostly by your household’s income and need. The figures below will help you estimate the aid you might receive from The Catholic University of America.
Financial assistance, available as scholarships, loans, and work-study, is a way schools lower the price of attendance so many students can enroll. Keep in mind that certain forms of assistance are more beneficial than others, and aid amounts differ from student to student.
Among first-time, full-time freshmen at The Catholic University of America, 99% of first-time, full-time freshmen received some form of financial aid some 854 incoming students).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 99% | $42,657 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 99% | $40,497 |
| Federal Pell grants | 27% | $5,785 |
| State/local grants | 8% | $2,625 |
| Federal student loans | 56% | $5,222 |
Grants and scholarships are the most valuable form of aid because, unlike loans, they never have to be repaid. At this school, around 94% of undergraduates were awarded grant or scholarship aid averaging $36,240 (among about 2954 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 94% | $36,240 |
| Federal Pell grants | 20% | $5,361 |
| Federal student loans | 48% | $6,357 |
For on-campus title-IV students, average grant aid came to $45,920.
Need-based aid means lower-income families typically pay far less than the sticker price suggests.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $21,047 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $22,662 |
| Over $75,000 | $38,378 |
The numbers above are post-aid net prices, so they already account for grants and scholarships.
Net price is the average annual cost after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the published cost of attendance — the figure closest to what a typical aid-receiving student actually pays.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $29,561 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $32,798 |
For a customized cost estimate, visit CUA’s net price tool: financial-aid.catholic.edu/costs/net-price-calculator.html.
The median student at CUA graduates with $22,250 of federal borrowing.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $22,250 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $26,000 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $275.64/mo |
That monthly figure reflects the median graduate debt repaid on a standard 10-year federal schedule.
Looking only at the median can be misleading because it hides the spread. The figures below chart the debt distribution at CUA.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,500 |
| 25th percentile | $12,000 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $33,000 |
The figures below break down median federal debt by income tier, first-generation status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $20,219 |
| Middle income | $24,187 |
| High income | $22,310 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $21,000 |
| Continuing-generation students | $23,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $22,250 |
| Independent students | $23,000 |
These indicators are derived from the underlying debt data and summarize the overall picture at CUA.
The Stafford program is the federal direct-loan vehicle most undergraduates use. The aggregate figures below show how active the program is at CUA:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 17457 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $555,516,862 |
Veterans and active-duty service members may qualify for the Post-9/11 GI Bill or DoD Tuition Assistance.
Post-9/11 GI Bill activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 91 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $2,554,914 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $28,076 |
DoD program volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 1 |
| Total DoD amount | $1,430 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $1,430 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.